holmes



(No MoJ-del.)

A. B.. HOLMES.

, GAS ENGINE. T10-540,490l

' 2 sheets-sheet 2'.

Patented June 4, 1895;

W 6- fy llummwwff Uil l UNITED STiVrEs PATENT OFFICE.

ALEXANDER R. HOLMES, OE NEw YORK, N. Y., AssidNoR OE ONE-HALE 'ro .HARRY E. wooD, lor SAME PLACE. v

GAS-ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part k.of Letters Patent No. 540,490, dated J une 4, 1895.

Application iledMarch 13, 1895.

To a/ZZ whom it. mag/concern:

'Be it known that I, ALEXANDER R. HOLMES, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas- Engines,ot`V which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to improvements in io gas engines, and is specially intended to .ap-

ply to the engine patented to F. W'. Ofeldt, No. 356,4l9,-dated,January 28,1887. f

Therobject of the invention is to so improve the engine above referred to that the escaping gas from the engine cylinders may be retained within the casing, and yet excludedfrom the bearings, so that lubrication may-be maintained in a more perfect manner,

also fto provide for gas escape from the crank zo shaft chamber.

For a general understanding of the engine, reference is made to the above patent.

`Only so much of the engine is herein illustrated as is believed to be necessary to give a z 5 clear understanding of the improvement.

Figure l is a broken vertical central section of the engine, showing one cylinder in section, one partly broken, and one in elevation, and showing some of the connections in 3o section and some in elevation, as will be apparent to one skilled in this art. Fig. 2 is a broken vertical ytransverse section centrally through the casing and one of the cylinders, it being immaterial which cylinder. Fig. 3

3 5 is an enlarged elevation of one ofthe cylinders, taken in the same direction as Fig. 2.' Figli is a plan of the base-plate for supporting the cylinder and stopping off the gas from the lower part of the casing. Fig. 5 is a plan 4o of a single base-plate for supporting all three cylinders. Fig. 6 is a vertical section in one direction, and Fig. 7 a vertical section at right angles thereto, of the lower part of the casing and the stopoff slightly modified.

A denotes the hollow frame ory box-'shaped casing which incloses the engine, its lower portion A being somewhat inthe shape of a trough, and being secured 'to' the part yA by bolts or other suitable means. The valve 5o seats areon the part A2 of the inclosing casing.

Serial No. 541,557. (No model.)

The maiu'shaft C is arranged in the trough in the lowerpart of the casing, passing through stuffing boxes at the ends. The main shaft C has three cranks, and-to each crank a pitmane is connected, the pitman being 55 connected to a piston, I. Each piston moves in a vertical cylinder E, which is open at the y ducted'from the casing A back to the tank, 65

through passages H. The pump G is operated Vfrom the maincrank shaft. All these parts are old,ian`d`are described in the patent referredfto. i

In the engine described inthe patent, the 7o cylinders are open at the bottom, and are connected to the casing only at the top. The gas within the casing is free to enter th-e crank shaft chamber, and the hot gas soon burns out any lubricant, and melts the babbitt bearings, so that the engine depends for lubrication on the condensed oil or gas and the bearings are imperfect.

Inmyimprovem'ent, about to be described,

I stop off the gas from the crank shaft cham- 8o ber, by a plate 2, and by extension of the vcylinders. The plate 2 has openings 3, 4, 5, for the passage of the pitman and crank rods, and an opening 6 for the pump rod. The plate 2 may be secured between the sections 85 A and A of the casing, or be otherwise secured in any suitable manner.

The cylinders I are brought down to the plate 2 by means of skirts or extensions. As

indicated in Figs. 1,2, and. 3, these exten- 9o sions -aare ared in one direction,fto give room for the play of the cranks, while in the other direction, or atthe'proxirnate sides of the cylinders, the skirtsy are a direct continuation ofthe cylinder walls. The lower edge of each cylinder skirt will have a ange -bto rest on plate 2, and may have a rib -cf to By this con- :oo

struction the exhaust gas from the casing is prevented from entering the lower ends of the cylinders, While permitted to freely circulate around the bodies of the cylinders. The cylinders are also firmly supported in position. Plate 2 may be made in sections, as indicated at 2 Fig. 4.

By the modification shown in Figs. 6 and '7, the skirts or extensions -a are made separate from the cylinders I, and inclose said cylinders at their lower ends. In other respects these skirts resemble those already described.

Skilled mechanics will understand that varions forms may be given to the skirts, and that tight joints may be made and the parts firmly secured together by means well known in the art.

As the plate 2 and the cylinder skirts form a stop off by which the gas is prevented from entering the crank shaft chamber, the bearings in this chamber may be supplied with any usual lubricant. I prefer to supply a considerable amount of lubricating` oil, which remains inolosed in the crank shaft chamber, and lubricates the bearings for a long time.

To prevent the escape of any small quantity of gas which may enter the crank shaft chamber around the pistons, I provide a pipe l0, leading from the crank shaft chamber back to the chamber between the cylinders and casing. This pipe l0 is provided with a check valve 1l, which permits the passage of gas upward, but not downward. The gas, if any, will thus be carried from the crank shaft chamber to the exhaust at such times as there is little pressure in the casing.

The exhaust passages II are connected to the casing near the bottom ot the space between the cylinders and casing, so that any accumulation of oil from the condensation of gas in the chamber around the cylinders will be carried olf with the exhaust.

By the construction above set forth the engine is much increased in eiliciency, and very perfect lubrication is effected, which has before been dilcult or impracticable.

IVhat I claim is- 1. In a gas engine of the character described, the inclosiug casing, the cylinders connected thereto and exhausting into said casing as described, and the stop on. plate and cylinder skirts forming a partition by which the gasis excluded from the inclosed crank shaft chamber, the specified elements combined substantially as described.

2. In agas engine ofthe character described, having the outer casing, the inclosed cylinders, and the stop oft partition as set forth, a gas escape passage leading from the crank shaft chamber to the chamber between the cylinders and casing and provided with a check valve, all combined substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALEXANDER R. HOLMES.

Witnesses:

W. A. BARTLETT, CHARLES L. DU Bols. 

